Age of Rebirth

The words of Ouyang Yishan, commander of the Second Mechanized Brigade of the Independent Division directly under the Corps, also came out of feelings. This brother Liu, every time before a battle, always has such a restless expression, especially when he is rushing to get a mission It's like eating gunpowder, yelling at whoever catches, and now the first and second brigades are fighting side by side, there is no competition for missions, otherwise, the current self is the best target.

However, once entering the battle, Liu Hongzhang behaved extremely calmly, patiently like a hunting tiger, his precise grasp of the situation on the battlefield, and the changes in the battle situation reached an astonishing level, at least Ouyang Yishan thought he was inferior Therefore, he prodded Liu Hongzhang half-jokingly, which can be regarded as revenge for the bullying he suffered in the past.

Liu Hongzhang stopped in his tracks, rolled his eyes and said, "You think I'm willing to do this, aren't you in a hurry? Think about it, our counterattack plan this time is very adventurous. First of all, in terms of strength, it doesn't take much The superiority, the heavy equipment is still left behind, the troops are not dominant, and the firepower is not dominant, which is inconsistent with the division commander's consistent proposition that every battle must concentrate superior troops and firepower, which is inconsistent with the purpose of fighting an annihilation war."

"I'm worried that if the division commander doesn't approve our counterattack plan, it will be a missed opportunity. Alas, if the heavy artillery regiments of our two brigades keep up, it won't be so hard at all, and the frontier troops of the Outer Mongolian border guards will be quietly Withdrew to a safe area, two heavy artillery regiments bombarded for an hour, and all problems were solved. I am used to fighting battles with superior fire support, so I am not used to fighting such battles so suddenly!"

"I don't know how many years the first brigade has been without the support of heavy artillery and tanks. It relies on mortars, light and heavy machine guns and submachine guns to solve the battle. I don't believe it. Can you get used to it, Ouyang? Don't look at you as if nothing happened. In fact, in your heart More anxious than I am. Right?" [

Just as Ouyang Yishan was about to refute, Colonel Liu Chenglin, Chief of Staff of the First Brigade, hurried in, "Report to the two commanders, I just received a call back from the division commander!"

Liu Hongzhang asked eagerly: "Chief of Staff, how did the division commander reply?"

Liu Chenglin said with a smile: "The brigade commander, the division commander has agreed to our counterattack plan, and made two demands!"

Before Liu Chenglin could finish speaking, Liu Hongzhang grabbed the telegram and looked at it quickly.Liu Chenglin knew the brigade commander's temper, so he looked at Ouyang Yishan reluctantly, and Ouyang Yishan smiled kindly, expressing his understanding.

After reading the telegram, Liu Hongzhang said: "Okay. The division commander has decided to go with us, Brigadier Ouyang. The division commander's request is consistent with our expectations. I think about fighting a war of annihilation or sending all the Soviet troops back to the north bank. In the situation where the troops are equal and the firepower is not dominant, it is not sure to fight the war of annihilation. If it is not done well, it will become a deadly battle, and the belly will be broken. The [-] to [-] Soviet troops will not be able to eat one bite. My old Liu is not greedy yet. This level!"

"If the battle cannot be resolved before dawn, and the Soviet reinforcements from the north bank come up, we will be in trouble! Maybe we will be dumped by the Soviet army. Therefore, my opinion is that it is better to drive the Soviet army back to the north bank. Sure, Brigadier Ouyang, what's your opinion?"

After finishing speaking, he handed the telegram to Ouyang Yishan, waiting for the opinion of the deputy commander-in-chief. After reading the telegram, Ouyang Yishan replied: "Commander Liu, I completely agree with your opinion. Returning to the north bank is exactly what we want to achieve in this counterattack. Chief of Staff Liu sent a call back to the division commander. All members of the Selenge River Campaign Command carefully studied the division commander's order and believed that the Soviet troops on the south bank should be It is safe to drive away from the existing position."

"Chief of Staff Liu, just call back to the division commander like this." Then, Ouyang Yishan looked at Liu Hongzhang and continued, "Commander Liu, do you think it's okay to call back like this?"

Liu Hongzhang scolded with a smile: "You have finished what you have to say, and you still ask for my opinion!" Then, he said to Liu Chenglin: "Chief of Staff, immediately issue a combat order to the troops. At two o'clock in the morning, launch a counterattack. Outer Mongolia border defense The troops of the army must send special personnel to carry written orders and convey them in person, and they cannot call to inform. Do you understand what I mean? "

Of course Liu Chenglin understood what the brigade commander meant, and he nodded with a smile and left. Ouyang Yishan looked at Liu Hongzhang, teasingly said: "I didn't see it, you brother Liu is quite careful!"

Liu Hongzhang said with a little pride: "That is, my old Liu has always considered issues carefully. It is the first time for the two troops to fight together. Don't let Sun Zhenbang's subordinates think that we are playing the boss and pointing fingers. , this is no better than you and I fighting for tasks, no matter how noisy we are, we can't get out of the cauldron directly under the Corps!"

Outer Mongolia Kulun, Outer Mongolia Campaign Headquarters, Tang Qiuli looked at the telegram sent by Liu Hongzhang, and said to Chief of Staff Zhao Yuhe: "This Liu Hongzhang is not bad, he is very smart and calm enough. It seems that I have some Stop calming down, Yuhe, call Liu Hongzhang back and agree to their battle plan!"

The northwest wind became stronger and stronger, blowing the cold water vapor of the Selenge River to the south bank. In the dark night, the roar of the river water made the night more and more intense. The troops commanded by the Soviet Transcaucasus Military Region on the south bank The officer, Major General Wadkin, wrapped himself in the overcoat and looked at the position of the independent division troops that were only a few hundred meters away from him. In the dark night, he was like a crouching monster, somewhat uneasy.

Two batches, fifteen regiments of more than 5 troops, have been hanging alone on the south bank for more than a day. During this period, they have launched several attacks on the position of the independent division, but each time they hit the head It cannot be said that the troops did not try their best to break the blood. However, the line of defense composed of submachine guns, rifles and grenades remained unmoved. Every time they attacked, what greeted their own troops was exhausted rain and grenades like black old birds.

Before going south to recover Outer Mongolia, Major General Vadkin learned from the intelligence department that the opponent of the Transcaucasus Military Region troops was the second-rate army of the Chinese Tang Qiuli. What is the concept of a second-rate army? Major General Jin naturally understood that it meant that the opponent's combat power was definitely not strong enough, which also showed the weakness of the opponent's weapons and equipment.

Moreover, the cavalry is still the main force. The cavalry, Major General Vadkin once sneered at it. Maybe, going back more than ten years, the cavalry will become the master of the battlefield and become the nightmare of the infantry. But now, facing the mechanized corps The torrent of iron armor, the cavalry can only be submerged in the vortex of war, crushed to pieces by tanks and armored vehicles, the cavalry should be a unit that has been eliminated by the battlefield.

But after the battle of crossing the river started, Major General Vadkin found out that he was wrong, very serious. Under the cover of tank fire, he commanded the troops to forcefully cross the Selenge River. After paying casualties, he finally stood on the south bank. Seeing a cavalryman, a war horse, facing a solid fortification, a fire net composed of too many automatic weapons, the troops were forced to stop here, and could no longer stand still.

Moreover, the situation on the battlefield is extremely unfavorable to him. The troops of the Outer Mongolian Border Guards are condescending, and their firepower can easily suppress their own troops, even if there is a single soldier.Exposure to the simple fortifications will cause it for a while. If anyone now says in front of his face that the Chinese army blocking the passage on the south bank is a second-rate army and a cavalry unit, Major General Vadkin will definitely dare to spray him in the face Drooling, and yelling "Fart!"

This afternoon's attack, the tank unit that was responsible for the fire cover and played a decisive role, was blown up by the bombers of the Independent Division and disappeared without a trace. Major General Vadkin's heart hung up. Stand firm and rely on what. [

Without the cover and suppression of tank fire, the soldiers of the Independent Division could overwhelm tens of thousands of soldiers and be beaten passively. Their own troops could not break through the positions of the Independent Division, but those Chinese, There was no way to counterattack his own troops, and the battlefield was in a temporary stalemate, but who knew what would happen. "It's a hard job to stand alone on the south bank during the long night," Major General Vadkin thought dissatisfiedly.

At exactly one o'clock in the morning on September 21, when the night was darkest, there were more than [-] people in the two main field brigades directly under the corps, and more than [-] people in the four reinforced regiments of the Outer Mongolia Frontier Defense Army attached to them. In an hour, they quietly entered the position. The roaring Selenge River and the strong night wind covered up the actions of the troops. The light and heavy machine guns responsible for the fire cover stretched out their black muzzles and pointed at the Soviet troops on the river beach. .

In the second trench, the mortar units of the first and second brigades, plus all the mortar units of the Outer Mongolian Border Guards, had a total of more than 400 mortars, with their muzzles raised, The gunners of the Mongolian Frontier Army whispered to the gunners directly under the corps about the coordinates and directions of the shelling. In addition to hundreds of mortars, there were more than [-] recoil gun companies and more than [-] recoil guns.

This is a great weapon against the firepower of the Soviet army. For this counterattack, Liu Hongzhang played all his cards and used all his resources. He did not have large-caliber heavy artillery, so he used more than 1000 mortars and recoil guns. The Soviet army launched an artillery attack, several hundred meters, which is the best distance for these small-caliber artillery to exert their power. On the front of the counterattack, the density of small-caliber artillery has reached more than 45 pieces per kilometer.

At about one o'clock in the morning, Liu Hongzhang looked at his watch and said to Ouyang Yishan: "Deputy Commander Ouyang, I will go to the front and take command from the front. You are in the command post. If within 10 minutes of the battle, we have not disrupted the battle." For the position of the Soviet army, use the backup plan and put all the troops of the Outer Mongolian Border Guards into it!"

It was impossible for Ouyang Yishan to agree. He became anxious and said loudly: "No! No! Brigadier Liu, you are the commander-in-chief of the campaign. How can you come to the front line in person? I should be the one to go. This is against the rules!"

Liu Hongzhang looked at Ouyang Yishan, whose eyes were burning with anxiety, grabbed a steel helmet and put it on his head. Just as he was about to speak, Liu Chenglin, chief of staff of the brigade, and Meng Zhaoxu, chief of the combat section of the Outer Mongolia Frontier Defense Army, hurried in with chills all over their bodies.

(to be continued) (to be continued...)